Skip To Content
JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.
The Schmooze

Kim Jong-Un Officially Condemns James Franco and Seth Rogen

Seth Rogen and James Franco are wanted men.

But this time, the pair aren’t on the run from scary-but-somewhat-lovable pot dealers a la “Pineapple Express.” Apparently, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has taken offense to the plot of the Jewish comedy duo’s new movie. Since “The Interview” basically sees Rogen and Franco as a television host named Dave Skylark (Franco) and his producer (Rogen) who are enlisted by the CIA to travel to North Korea and assassinate Kim Jong-un, one could see why he would be less than enthusiastic.

A North Korean spokesperson said, “[this] shows the desperation of the US government and American society. A film about the assassination of a foreign leader mirrors what the US has done in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Ukraine. And let us not forget who killed [President John F.] Kennedy – Americans.”

Seth Rogen doesn’t seem too worried though. He hopes the North Korean leader will enjoy the fim:

“The Interview” hits theaters in the fall. Watch the trailer below:

A message from our Publisher & CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

With your support, we’ll be ready for whatever 2025 brings.

Republish This Story

Please read before republishing

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines. You must credit the Forward, retain our pixel and preserve our canonical link in Google search.  See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.

To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.

We don't support Internet Explorer

Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site.